Sussex County

Chuck-will’s-widow, © Rob Bielawski

Long before the area that is now Sussex County was settled by Europeans, the area was home to Native Americans belonging to the Cheroenhaka Tribe. Although European settlement on the south bank of the James River began not long after the initial landing at Jamestown in 1607, agreements with Native Americans prevented European settlers from venturing beyond the Blackwater River, into what is now Sussex. Settlement of the region began around 1700, and by 1754 had progressed enough that the Virginia legislature created Sussex County from territory previously belonging to Surry. African Americans, both enslaved and free, have long played an important role in the county’s history. By 1790, over half the population was of African descent, though 90% of this population was enslaved. However, the large Quaker population in Sussex County also meant that there were some supporters of emancipation, and by the outbreak of the Civil War in 1860, about 33% of the black population was free. The county’s African American residents have continued to shape the history of the area, and by 1984 the County Board of Supervisors was majority black for the first time.

In the nineteenth century, Sussex was also significant as a railway route, beginning in 1832 when the Petersburg & Weldon was constructed through the county. Even more significant was the 1853 arrival of the Norfolk Southern Railway, spearheaded by William Mahone. The presence of the railroad meant boom times for depots along the way, and the towns of Waverly, Wakefield, Stony Creek, and Jarratt grew alongside the railroad and gradually became incorporated. Mahone and his wife Otelia are commemorated in local lore, which holds that while riding the train through these depots, Otelia named several of the towns in Sussex and neighboring counties, including Waverly and Wakefield, with inspiration from Sir Walter Scott’s novel Waverly.

Among birders, Sussex County is most famous as the site of Piney Grove Preserve, a Nature Conservancy property that is home to the last known colony of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in Virginia. While these birds can often be detected from the roads that run through the preserve, they are most easily seen on one of the tours sometimes led by the biologists who manage the population. In addition to the woodpeckers, Piney Grove is an excellent year-round birding location that has healthy populations of Brown-headed Nuthatches and Northern Bobwhites. In the breeding season, it is an excellent place to see Blue Grosbeaks, and both Chuck-will’s-widows and Eastern Whip-poor-wills can be heard at night. During winter, large numbers of Fox Sparrows will be a delight for visiting birders. Chubb Sandhill Natural Area Preserve, in the southwest part of the county, is another good birding spot with woodland habitat that often holds migrant passerines, as well as access to the Nottoway River where birders can find species such as Wood Duck and Prothonotary Warbler. The landscape of Sussex County is also dotted with mill ponds, many of which can be productive for waterfowl in winter, and which in summer hold the prospect of Anhinga, a species which is present in very low densities in the region. Cruising rural roads is the best option for detecting open country birds such as Eastern Meadowlark, Grasshopper Sparrow, and in the right year, Dickcissel.

The last, heavily-managed population of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in the state is a poignant testament to the fact that Sussex – like other parts of the state – once hosted a fuller avian landscape. Historic records from the county further testify to this, including some of species which are greatly reduced or possibly even extirpated from Virginia, such as Bachman’s Sparrow, Henslow’s Sparrow, and Loggerhead Shrike. Like the other counties that compose Virginia’s Southside, Sussex County receives only a trickle of birders, despite its proximity to population centers and interstates, and many of those who do come don’t venture beyond Piney Grove, making this an area that is ripe for exploration by eager birders!

—Matt Anthony

Hotspots

Stakeout Hotspots

The following hotspots should only be used to input historical records pertaining to a specific staked out rarity, as indicated in the hotspots names.

Sources